Passport MINI of Alexandria

First of all let me say that I am skeptical of all these reviews on here where people rate this dealership as perfect five out of five on EVERY category. It looks too perfect to me. I do not understand reviews on here where people rate this dealership as perfect five out of five on EVERY category. It looks too perfect to me. I do not understand how this dealership gets such good ratings. The sales associate I was dealing with did not return my communication asking questions. I think I pissed him off because I was asking many questions. But hey that is what he is there for to answer my questions. The prices at this dealership are horrible, absolutely horrible. They are hard to deal with on the prices. I live near the dealership and I saw the same exact car there for a very long time and I even recorded the stock number and the car sat there forever. One of the sales guys kept telling me that every car they get is sold off the lot almost immediately. They give you a ton of bs about why you need to pay sticker and such too. Try another Mini Dealer in the area. There are about 4 within a one hour zone of Alexandria and I just got mine for 2075 off sticker when Passport Alexandria would only give me 500. My advice- go to SEVERAL dealers before you buy your car, ask lots of questions, and check prices..... More

I purchased my 2nd MINI from Passport MINI this evening. As with my first purchase, my experience was exceptional. Each person who works for Passport MINI is first rate, not the least of whom is my dealer, As with my first purchase, my experience was exceptional. Each person who works for Passport MINI is first rate, not the least of whom is my dealer, Vinnie Maletesta. Vinnie is low pressure, highly knowledgeable, patient, and extremely personable. I never feel like anyone at Passport MINI tries to take advantage of their customers. If anything, they are exceedingly fair and honest. My experience with Passport MINI service also has been first rate. The purchase I made tonight is my third MINI. I purchased my first MINI from another Northern Virginia dealer. With that dealership, I felt like they treated MINI owners as second-rate customers (they were a joint MINI/BMW dealership). They were unhelpful, it would take weeks to get a service appointment, and I'd walk into the dealership and nobody would even say hello, let alone offer to help. My experience with Passport has been the exact opposite; always friendly, always helpful, always welcoming. If you are in the market for a new or used MINI, I urge you to visit Passport MINI, and ask for Vinnie. More

The first contact with the dealership was really quick. I had sent an inquiry from the mini site and they replied within the hour. But the sales person who contacted me was taking off for the day. I really w had sent an inquiry from the mini site and they replied within the hour. But the sales person who contacted me was taking off for the day. I really wanted to test drive that day so I show up and a Vinnie comes up and asks me what I am looking for. I mentioned I have been wanting a Mini for years and now they have an almost practical car, Countryman, I would like to test drive it. He immediately got the keys out and we went out on a drive. After the first few awkward minutes, we started speaking and he was very friendly. After the countryman test drive, he asked me if for kicks would I like to drive Cooper S hard top. I knew right then no matter what car i buy I am going to get it at this dealership. I told him i would email him a custom built for the car and he would inquire about the "Costco" discount on the car, even though it is has been just released and they might not have an arrangement with costco yet. On Monday, I check my email and he had already had a follow up email with the formalities but it was a nice touch. I sent him a configuration and in like 10 minutes he had a quote and added the "Costco" discount (500 off). He very patiently answered all my follow up emails and when i said i would like some time and will get back to him, he did not pressure me and told me to get back when i was ready. During that time, more than a week , he did not email me back. I went to another dealer in Annapolis but they would not budge from the sticker price and were not as friendly. Any way a week later on Saturday I made an appointment and met Vinnie again. I had mentioned my budget and he suggested me stuff that I could take off and get equivalent ones and not bust my budget. Then he sat down and looked for a car that matched what i had spec-ed out and we found that we had to order one that would take 8 weeks. He then suggested if i get a different color I might be able to get one sooner. So more searching and after 30 minutes i had found my Mini countryman. Really good friendly service. I would strongly recommend it. More

Worst experience ever!!! Made all the bad stereotypes about car salesmen true. Had to wait more than a month for cables and other options that should have been included in the car. Overcharged me and ref about car salesmen true. Had to wait more than a month for cables and other options that should have been included in the car. Overcharged me and refused to give me a full credits. The sales person never returned my phone calls or emails. Should have just stayed on with the Sterling dealership. More

Definitely avoid! I saw a used BMW 335xi Coupe there for sale. Drove from Ashburn to Alexandria to see it. The salesman there who handled the appointment and sales was a genuine used car salesman. He kne sale. Drove from Ashburn to Alexandria to see it. The salesman there who handled the appointment and sales was a genuine used car salesman. He knew I was interested in the vehicle after I put myself on the waiting list if the customer who put down an initial deposit couldn't buy the car. Well he wasn't able to and now the sales guy Ahmed Shaker was going to try and take me for all I'm worth. When I stopped by Sunday 12/19/2010 he showed me the vehicle and was telling me during the negotiations that the vehicle had been detailed and ready to go... nope not true. Marks and areas that were definitely not cleaned up on the inside. The vehicle didn't even have proper service records in the Carfax report. He tried telling me Passport BMW did all the work but for some reason nothing was ever reported to Carfax... anything else not reported?? After I opened with an offer he said he wouldn't even go to his manager with it. I explained to him that his listing price is too high to close to what a CPO vehicle was worth after a real BMW dealer certified it and gave you there discount especially when it didn't even qualify for BMW's year end special of 0.9% financing, $1,500, or free 2 year extended maintenance. He got really pushy and didn't even want to negotiate saying no way he could lower the price. He barged out of the door, ran over to the car parked by the curb and drove it off and parked it in the lot. Wow, they really try to push your buttons here at Passport Mini! Afterward he said if I didn't want it then the sales guy next door sitting there was has been eyeing it and was waiting (uh huh sure...). So why didn't you sell it to him a long time ago?? Then later he actually tries telling me they paid near if not the full trade in value for the fully loaded car! HAHAHA and told me it cost them almost $1,000 to get this down from Jersey from auction... What a bunch of bullsh1t! He thinks I'm stupid or he can talk a bunch of crap to force me to buy it at full value. So now this car wasn't a trade in, it was bought at an auction??? And he expected me to believe he paid near full listing price for this trade in, giving full value to each option? Wow, what a kind and nice dealer!! The trade in value was about $24,000 for the mileage and base price, he was trying to say they gave the guy close to the $28,000 that is listed online for a fully loaded car, hilarious! Even if he met him in the middle with a trade in value of $26,000 he'd still be making $3-4 thousand from me. They mark down the value of options with the trade in guy and expect to get full value for the options when they sell it! Finally he said he could lower the asking price a thousand, maybe $1,500... so what was that whole act and show with driving the car off in a huff and going next door to talk nasty about me with your manager? What they didn't think I could see through the glass walls and see some of the sales guys looking over and snickering and laughing while Ahmed had his back turned to me? So now it went from we can't drop the price of the car to, okay we can go down $1,000-$1,500. He even tried selling me on the fact that the relatively new rear tires were replaced by Passport Mini, when an hour before he was saying he didn't know about the tire conditions and he thinks the rear tires were new! So you replaced them but know nothing about them? Incredible! Nice looking dealership... but all the makeup can't hide the used car salesman tactics. He said, "you can take this or you can leave." What a nice guy you are Ahmed. Obviously we couldn't agree on a compromise. Who heard of a dealer who only comes down $1,000 on his inflated listing price? Especially when the price of the car at $31,000 is pretty much the same as a similar CPO BMW after considering the extended warranty, detailing of the vehicle, and the approximate 7% most BMW dealers give you off their list price, not to consider the current BMW year end promotions worth $1,500-$2,500. I was going to put down a large deposit and even get my financing with them but all they could do was give me an attitude and try to strong arm me. I could have gone up more but the nasty feeling and the taste in my mouth that kept building really disgusted me. I don't know if they treat all Asian like this or maybe just young professionals in general but I don't roll over easy and just take it. I suggest you avoid Passport Mini of Alexandria especially for their used vehicle. You've been warned, they try to play with your desires for their cars and once they have you in their attitude goes sour until they squeeze every last dime out of you. Nasty salesmen and piss poor attitude. I know I'm going to let everyone at work and that I know to avoid this this brand and this dealership for sure. If you absolutely need a Mini or a used car at least save yourself hours of headache in there and go somewhere else. More

I purchased my MINI five months ago and am absolutely in love with my car and the team at Passport MINI. Excellent attentive staff make even the worst part of car ownership (getting the vehicle serviced!) love with my car and the team at Passport MINI. Excellent attentive staff make even the worst part of car ownership (getting the vehicle serviced!) a pleasure. I highly recommend this dealership. More

I went to Passport Mini because it was the closest to where I lived, but was glad I went becuase I found a very helpful staff which made my purchase go very smoothly. I had a leased vehicle I wanted to where I lived, but was glad I went becuase I found a very helpful staff which made my purchase go very smoothly. I had a leased vehicle I wanted to buy out of, and they handled the paperwork for me, making my end of the deal hassle free. They also did a great job of finding the Mini I wanted, and handled the cost of shipping to keep the purchase under the budget I wanted to keep it under. Brian Dileo was a pleasure to work with, and made the experience enjoyable, almost as enjoyable as driving my new 2010 Mini Cooper S. More

It was a blazing hot Saturday afternoon here in the Mid-Atlantic DC area. Temperatures were easily into the mid 90s. I woke up early and decided I would go out and test-drive a few cars. Like any perso Mid-Atlantic DC area. Temperatures were easily into the mid 90s. I woke up early and decided I would go out and test-drive a few cars. Like any person, I prepared myself mentality and emotionally to deal with the typical sales environment of a dealership. High pressure, poor manners, lack of product knowledge - you know what you typical can expect at a dealer. My day turned out as expected, frustrated, hot and tired of dealing with the “fill out a credit application and we’ll let you drive whatever you like”. Keep in mind I wasn’t out looking to drive a new 458 Italia or similar vehicle. One salesman said, “It’s way too much work to get this car off the sidewalk for a test drive. Sorry”. The side walk was level with the ground, so I was confused but nonetheless scratched my head and left. After getting something cold to drink I was headed back to Alexandria when I noticed a car in the back of the new(er) Mini Cooper dealership near Landmark Mall. After navigating the dangerous intersection and making my way into the dealership parking lot unscathed – I parked and made a bee line to the Cyber Gray (or Grey as the Brits would say) C6 Corvette. Gave it a once over and went inside to find a salesperson. I can’t say that I’m disappointed the sales staff didn’t chase me the ¼ mile across the parking lot. I was on a mission and given my speed I’m sure no one even noticed me zigzagging through the pool of Mini Coopers. Opening the door the first thing to hit me, besides the blast of refreshing cold air, was the upbeat clean, well groomed demeanor of the staff and the establishment. I made my way to the desk where a sales staff was paged to help me. Giles Bibic was the person charged with helping me out. He grabbed the keys to the Corvette and headed out to check it out with me. He made no attempt to pretend he knew the car (like most salesmen would do) , instead he just said, “If you need information I can do my best to find you an answer”. Very refreshing to not have an earful of BS spewed at you. After checking out the car fully we made our way back in where he was very accommodating in our transaction. One thing I will point out, like many dealerships Mini of Alexandria still plays the back and forth game with the SM/GM. I find this interesting in that this dealership is on the edge of breaking molds, yet still play the back and forth game. Selling cars is a profit game; I get it. So I play the game. We have agreed on a price, I’m happy with the deal – Giles even lets me take the car to pick up my wife so she can approve my purchase (come’on guys don’t laugh – you’d do the same). We are closing up the deal and Giles tells me, “You can’t actually take the car home tonight”. I felt like my guts had been ripped out. Given the location of the car on the lot and the lack of people cross-shopping a Mini and a Corvette – the staff had failed to notice the car did not have the proper VA inspection. It was late on a Saturday and there was nothing they could do. A loaner was out of the question (the service dept keeps a close eye on loaners – which shows great management). I finished up the F&I process, which normally is the worst part. You sit there having decided to spend a good amount of money only to have to fend off offers for yearly oil changes, tire insurance, free satellite radio, nitrogen tire fill ups and whatever else has a back end profit attached to it. I had none of this pressure. The F&I manager was super friendly, VERY detailed in the cost explanation and made the final signing what it should be – an exciting last-stop before being handed the keys to your new car. I applaud the staff at Passport Mini for their hard work and diligence to make the car buying experience an enjoyable one. I would be happy to refer any and all of my friends or fellow car buddies to visit this place if for anything other than to check out the décor, have a complimentary snack or water and even take a drive in a Mini! You never know!!! Hats off to the Team at Passport Mini! More

Great customer service! The staff went out of their way to get me the specific car that I wanted and when there was a misunderstanding with the license plate delivery, they went out of their way to resolve to get me the specific car that I wanted and when there was a misunderstanding with the license plate delivery, they went out of their way to resolve the issue quickly. Would definitely recommend this dealership to others! More

I am an out of town client and I travelled to the DC area to have my Mini serviced on a Saturday. I dropped the car off at 8am and returned at 3pm after not having been contacted all day. My service adviso to have my Mini serviced on a Saturday. I dropped the car off at 8am and returned at 3pm after not having been contacted all day. My service advisor (William) explained that my thermostat had gone bad, and even though he had the necessary parts in stock his warranty repairs were "too high" and therefore I would have to wait until monday for his manager to sign off on that repair. Thats right, he wanted me to stay in DC for 2 extra days and get a hotel room because he needed a signature to do the warranty work that my car needed. He eventually conceded that his solution wasn't acceptable and he gave me a loaner car to bring home and told me he would arrange a way to get my car back to me, and I was happy. THEN I didn't hear from them until Wednesday, he called to confirm my address and said my car was on the way home tomorrow. Finally I had to call the dealership at 5pm on Thursday because my car wasn't home and I hadn't heard anything. I got the General Manager on the phone, explained the situation to him, and he was clearly frustrated, BUT with me, not his employees. He told me I had to drive back to DC if I wanted my car (4 hours each way, 8 total) and that I should have known better to have taken his loaner car. Then he said if I would pay $400 he would get a truck to bring me my car. They have only been a MINI dealer for 8 months, but they have a long way to go. Oh, I also learned that David Hellmuth, the General Manager that I dealt with, was the owner's brother, not sure if he has earned his position or not, but you certainly couldn't prove it by me. More